Haley Barbour's Account Of Civil Rights Era In Mississippi Assailed By NAACP, Historians  —  What's Your Reaction: … WASHINGTON — Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour (R) has set off a firestorm of controversy over his comments on the civil rights era in his hometown of Yazoo City …

GOP senators concede arms treaty will secure enough votes to pass  —  Republican senators say privately they expect the Senate to ratify the New START treaty this week, which would hand President Obama his third major victory of the lame-duck session.  —  GOP senators — including those who plan …

Obama FCC Caves on Net Neutrality — Tuesday Betrayal Assured  —  What's Your Reaction:  —  Late Monday, a majority of the FCC has indicated that they're going to vote with Chairman Julius Genachowski for a toothless Net Neutrality rule.  —  According to all reports, the rule …

Gov. Chris Christie commutes sentence of man convicted of having guns in N.J. illegally  —  TRENTON — Brian Aitken, who was convicted of illegally possessing two handguns that he had legally purchased in Colorado, will be spending Christmas out of prison.  —  Gov. Chris Christie commuted …

U.S. Military Seeks to Expand Raids in Pakistan  —  WASHINGTON — Senior American military commanders in Afghanistan are pushing for an expanded campaign of Special Operations ground raids across the border into Pakistan's tribal areas, a risky strategy reflecting the growing frustration …

Dems prepare defense of healthcare law in face of repeal threats  —  Democrats are preparing a spirited defense of the healthcare law in the face of Republican efforts to dismantle it.  —  Statements from lawmakers, advocates and the administration reveal a multi-pronged strategy …

That snow outside is what global warming looks like  —  Unusually cold winters may make you think scientists have got it all wrong.  But the data reveal a chilling truth  —  There were two silent calls, followed by a message left on my voicemail.  She had a soft, gentle voice and a mid-Wales accent.

Janet Napolitano: We're Working “24/7, 364″ To Keep The American People Safe  —  Ya gotta wonder which day America's anti-terror forces are kicking their feet up with a book and maybe a nap, instead of, you know, “keeping the American people safe?”  —  On ABC's World News tonight …

Toyota Motor Corp will Pay $32.425 Million in Civil Penalties as the Result of Two Department of Transportation Investigations  —  WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced that Toyota Motor Corporation has agreed to pay an additional $32.425 million …

Coburn may block 9/11 bill  —  New York Democrats hoping for quick action on a bill to give health care compensation to Ground Zero workers are about to run into Tom Coburn.  —  The Oklahoma Republican and physician — known in the Senate as “Dr. No” for his penchant in blocking bills …

Nancy Pelosi: No regrets  —  “Every minute is a new minute to me,” says Nancy Pelosi, and, with boxes packed in the hall outside, the soon-to-be-former speaker has already jumped ahead to her vision of the “humming, whirling entity” House Democrats can still be in the coming Congress.

Chris Christie's Pepsi problem  —  In 1975, Pepsi unleashed “the Pepsi Challenge,” a blind taste test where subjects threw back an ounce of each beverage and reported back on their favorite.  Their favorite was Pepsi.  —  You already know what happened next: Coca-Cola developed a more Pepsi-like product called “New Coke.”

Gauging the price tag for Afghanistan's security  —  As the United States begins to look closely at reducing future spending, it may be time to put a dollar figure on President Obama's commitment, restated last week, to the long-term security of Afghanistan.

My Token Moment of Outreach to the Religious Right  —  Ross Douthat: … I don't spend a lot of time agreeing with the Christian right about things, but the whining about the secularization of Christmas is a point I sympathize with.  If Christmas were more properly religious …

Omnibus Libertarian Reply Post  —  I'm not sure how much interest you all have in following my running debates with the libertarian world, so I'm trying to wrap a couple of these threads up here in one place.  —  A while ago, Will Wilkinson argued that the fact that people like Peter Orszag …

Debt crisis threatens 100 US cities  —  Overdrawn American cities could face financial collapse in 2011, defaulting on hundreds of billions of dollars of borrowings and derailing the US economic recovery.  Nor are European cities safe - Florence, Barcelona, Madrid, Venice: all are in trouble

Vince Cable: I could bring down the Government  —  Vince Cable has privately threatened to “bring the Government down” if he is “pushed too far” during fractious discussions with his Conservative colleagues, The Daily Telegraph can disclose.  —  The Business Secretary also claims …

F.E.C. Rejected Counsel With Its Vote on Senator  —  WASHINGTON — When the Federal Election Commission voted last month to close an investigation into a $96,000 payment to Senator John Ensign's former lover, it overrode the findings of its own staff lawyers, documents made public Monday showed.